Foreign and Commonwealth Office

India: Nationality

lord singh of wimbledon: To ask Her Majesty's Government what representations they intend to make to the government of India about the proposed National Register of Citizens; and in particular reports (1) that the Register may leave more than two million Muslims in Assam without citizenship and stateless, and (2) that detention camps are being constructed for such stateless persons.

lord ahmad of wimbledon: The British High Commission in New Delhi and our network of Deputy High Commissions across India are following reports on the protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and the National Register of Citizens, as well as the Government of India’s response. We raise our concerns with the Government of India where appropriate. I discussed the Government of India’s intent with, and popular response to, the CAA with India’s Minister of State for External Affairs on 19 December 2019. The British High Commissioner in New Delhi also raised this issue with the Indian Government on 6 January.

Ministry of Defence

Qassem Soleimani

the marquess of lothian: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made as to whether the government of the United States' drone strike on 3 January constituted defensive action under international law.

baroness goldie: Article 51 of the UN Charter recognises that all States have an inherent right of self-defence. It is for the United States to say how the criteria for self-defence are met. The Government of the United States has now set out its case for self-defence in a letter to the UN Security Council dated 8 January.

Iraq: Armed Forces

lord allen of kensington: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to enhance protection of UK service personnel currently based in Iraq.

baroness goldie: The Coalition and NATO Mission Iraq have relocated non-essential personnel from Baghdad. The safety and security of personnel is of paramount importance and force protection measures are under constant review.

Department for Work and Pensions

Universal Credit

baroness lister of burtersett: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many claimants have been moved on to Universal Credit under the managed migration pilot being undertaken in Harrogate.

baroness stedman-scott: The Universal Credit (Managed Migration Pilot and Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations 2019 allow the Department to pilot moving no more than 10,000 claimants across to Universal Credit from legacy benefits and is expected to last until November 2020. The Move to Universal Credit pilot commenced, as scheduled, in the area served by Harrogate Jobcentre in July 2019. The goal of the pilot is to learn as much as possible about how to safely move people from legacy benefits onto Universal Credit. As a result, we will increase numbers as slowly and gradually as necessary. We are adapting the design of this service and its processes frequently to ensure we provide the best possible support to those claimants who move to Universal Credit from their legacy benefit claims. The Department has already committed to updating Parliament and stakeholders on progress. We expect to provide our first update in the Spring. We will also set out an evaluation strategy, developed in consultation with stakeholders, before coming to Parliament in the Autumn with the findings and our proposals for the next phase of the delivery of Universal Credit.

Cabinet Office

Constituencies

lord greaves: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether,and if so when, they intend to lay orders for new parliamentary constituency boundaries before Parliament; and if not, what other proposals theyintend to make on constituency boundaries.

earl howe: The final reports of the four Boundary Commissions in the 2018 Boundary Review were submitted to the Government and laid before Parliament in September 2018.The Government will continue to monitor closely the current legal proceedings in relation to the Boundary Commission for Northern Ireland’s final report.As we set out in our manifesto, the Government will ensure we have updated and equal parliamentary boundaries, making sure every vote counts the same.

Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport

Sales Promotions: Internet

lord taylor of warwick: To ask Her Majesty's Government whatplans, if any, they have to introduce further regulation in regard to the online promotion of products by celebrities.

baroness barran: An error has been identified in the written answer given on 07 January 2020.The correct answer should have been:

Last year the government announced its intention to review how online advertising is regulated in the UK, looking at how well the current regime is equipped to tackle the challenges posed by developments in online advertising. The interim report can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/cma-lifts-the-lid-on-digital-giants. The announcement can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/jeremy-wrights-statement-on-the-cairncross-review. Currently, advertising in the UK is overseen by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA), the industry’s independent regulator, which for online advertising enforces the Code of Non-broadcast Advertising and Direct & Promotional Marketing (CAP Code) through a system of self-regulation. The CAP Code incorporates all relevant legislation, including consumer protection legislation, and sets standards for accuracy and honesty to which advertisers must adhere. This system operates independently of government. The remit of the ASA extends to the online promotion of products by celebrities, if the celebrity has been paid (including payment in kind) by an advertiser, and the advertiser exerts some form of editorial control over the resulting content. To guarantee compliance with the CAP Code in such cases, advertisers must ensure that endorsements are genuine, claims are accurate and advertising is clearly identified as such. The products themselves must also adhere to relevant regulation and standards. If the advertiser does not exert some form of editorial control over the resulting content, consumer protection legislation still applies and is enforced instead by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA). The CMA works closely with the ASA in this area, and expects such content to clearly identify any commercial relationship and to have regard to the CAP Code. The Competition and Markets Authority recently investigated social media endorsements by influencers / celebrities to ensure that they were being clear to their followers, resulting in influencers / celebrities changing their practices. They also published a guide to help influencers and those working with them to understand how to comply with UK consumer protection law. Separately to this work, but complementary to the government's review of online advertising, the CMA is conducting a market study of online platforms and digital advertising, and published an interim report in December which can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/cma-lifts-the-lid-on-digital-giants.

baroness barran: Last year the government announced its intention to review how online advertising is regulated in the UK, looking at how well the current regime is equipped to tackle the challenges posed by developments in online advertising. The interim report can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/cma-lifts-the-lid-on-digital-giants. The announcement can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/jeremy-wrights-statement-on-the-cairncross-review. Currently, advertising in the UK is overseen by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA), the industry’s independent regulator, which for online advertising enforces the Code of Non-broadcast Advertising and Direct & Promotional Marketing (CAP Code) through a system of self-regulation. The CAP Code incorporates all relevant legislation, including consumer protection legislation, and sets standards for accuracy and honesty to which advertisers must adhere. This system operates independently of government. The remit of the ASA extends to the online promotion of products by celebrities, if the celebrity has been paid (including payment in kind) by an advertiser, and the advertiser exerts some form of editorial control over the resulting content. To guarantee compliance with the CAP Code in such cases, advertisers must ensure that endorsements are genuine, claims are accurate and advertising is clearly identified as such. The products themselves must also adhere to relevant regulation and standards. If the advertiser does not exert some form of editorial control over the resulting content, consumer protection legislation still applies and is enforced instead by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA). The CMA works closely with the ASA in this area, and expects such content to clearly identify any commercial relationship and to have regard to the CAP Code. The Competition and Markets Authority recently investigated social media endorsements by influencers / celebrities to ensure that they were being clear to their followers, resulting in influencers / celebrities changing their practices. They also published a guide to help influencers and those working with them to understand how to comply with UK consumer protection law. Separately to this work, but complementary to the government's review of online advertising, the CMA is conducting a market study of online platforms and digital advertising, and published an interim report in December which can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/cma-lifts-the-lid-on-digital-giants.

Women and Equalities

Equal Pay

lord shinkwin: To ask Her Majesty's Government what evaluation has been made of the decision to implement mandatory gender pay gap reporting.

baroness williams of trafford: We have had two successful years of gender pay gap reporting so far, with over 10,000 employers publishing their data both years. Reporting provides an unprecedented level of transparency whilst driving board level discussions and pushing employers to take real action to close the gap.We are keeping a close eye on progress to ensure that the legislation delivers on its aims, but it is important that we give the new regulations sufficient time to embed, to see how employers are responding and what actions they are taking, before considering any changes.

Gay Conversion Therapy

lord black of brentwood: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they plan to hold a consultation on their proposal to outlaw gay conversion therapy; and if so, when.

baroness williams of trafford: Attempts to ‘cure’ somebody of their sexual orientation or gender identity, otherwise known as conversion therapies, are wrong. This Government will deliver on the LGBT Action Plan, including the commitment to end conversion therapy and we have commissioned research into the experiences of those who have been subjected to this abhorrent practice.These are complex issues that we are approaching sensitively. We are engaging widely before bringing forward proposals, and we will set out our next steps in the coming months to ensure that the actions we take are proportionate and effective.